The fact that Ducati’s factory team did not sign Jorge Martín created a lot of controversy, and many believe that this was a decisive factor in what would be the world title, giving the rider the motivation to prove, in some way, that a gross casting error had been made. However, the now world champion chose another GP as the decisive one.
Martín spoke to Marca, where he talked about what he considers to have been the ‘turning point’ and the ‘click’ for the decisively total focus on the fight for the championship.
If in Mugello Marc Márquez was announced as Ducati’s choice, the #89 made it clear that it was not at that moment that his inner flame was ignited: ‘Honestly, for me, the key point of the championship wasn’t there. Yes, obviously, for the press, for the contractual issue, there was a tremendous confusion and it was indeed a before and after in my history with Ducati, that’s clear’.
The then Pramac Racing rider then explained where he felt the greatest gain in motivation, with the German GP being decisive: ‘But, at a sporting level, a turning point may have been in Germany, when I crashed while leading with a big advantage. I think that could be the turning point for me to make the change and say: ‘From now on, I’m not going to fail anymore’. That really motivated me’.
It is worth remembering that Martín’s crash happened two laps from the end, with him leading and everything to get the double, and consequently the loss of the championship lead.
By: AM